Customer Reviews

Celtic Fire

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lucius is a Roman army commander who comes to Brittania to investigate his brother's fate. He strongly suspects his brother has been killed by the Celts, because he sees his ghost everywhere.

Rhiannon is the descendent of a Celtic queen who witnessed the death of Lucius's brother at the hand of a Druid priest. When Lucius captures her, he realizes that only when he's in Rhiannon's presence does his brother's ghost leave him alone.

Full of magic, suspense and a scorching love story, this book had me from the first page. I absolutely loved it, and can't wait for more by Joy Nash.

Celtic Fire is a refreshing change of pace from the normal historical periods you often see. Set in 116 AD in Roman Britain, Nash skillfully weaves a tale of a Roman warrior, Lucius, and the Celtic Queen, Rhiannon, and conjures a Paranormal Historical that hits target. Lucius comes to learn about the death of his brother, but finds love with the slave Rhiannon. The conflict between the conquering race and the Celts, the fact Lucius blames the Celts for his brother's death, provides a strong conflict to counter balance the leads instant attraction.

The characters are vivid, the story compelling, and written by an author with a love for her subject.

Nash's debut book strikes a note that says she is here to stay.

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

Joy Nash's debut book for Dorchester shows the talent she has developed over the past few years in the small press arena.

Rhiannon, hidden queen of the Celts, desires to free her people from the invading Romans, but with as little bloodshed as possible. She longs to unite the clans and reach peace in their land, as soon as they can be rid of the Romans. When their powerful Druid Priest sacrifices one of the Romans to the horned god, she knows danger will draw even nearer as the invaders won't stand for such things.

Lucius Aquila does not believe the reports of his brother Aulus' demise, as they don't ring true; especially in light of the fact his brother's ghost is haunting him. When he travels north to investigate, he is caught by surprise at the strength and cunning of an attack by the native people, and is even more shocked to find that his captive is a vivacious young beauty with enough passion to set him afire.

Rhiannon and Lucius are attracted to each other from the first, but much stands in the way for them. Lucius begins to suspect that she has dark powers when he realizes that only she can free him from the agony of Aulus' spectral form, which has grown stronger and more troubling since coming north. Rhiannon is being commanded to lure him into her snare so her people can finish their rites to the horned god. What they don't realize is that their love can bring them salvation and maybe even peace between their people. Will they figure it out before it's too late?

Here is an intriguing premise for a romance, taking place in a time not often featured in this genre. Fans of the paranormal subgenre will love the plot line of Aulus' ghost. This reviewer liked Ms. Nash's own spin on the idea of ghosts and the way this character changed throughout the story line, with a shock to come in the climactic battle scene towards the end of the novel.

Rhiannon's character was interesting in how she was drawn. She is a very strong woman, with some special skills and abilities that come into play several times in the story. For as strong as she is, the author stayed true to the times with Rhiannon, who even though she is a queen in her own right, her people don't respect her as much as they will when she chooses her king. She has many internal battles to face as she longs to do what is right for her people, without compromising her heart and wisdom. She has a deep well of love to share, as can be evidenced in her relationship with her brother, Owein, and Lucius' young son Marcus, as well as in her passion for Lucius. It is also interesting to learn of her ancestress' history and how that permanently affected the clans. Rhiannon wants to be strong and brave as her grandmother was, but without endangering her people.

Lucius' character is vividly portrayed, as are his internal battles. He longs to get to the bottom of the mystery of his brother's death, so as to allow his spirit eternal rest. He knows his duty to his land, and knows what he must do, as much as he wishes he could have a different life. One will like seeing how he grows and changes throughout the story, with the evidence of them being found in the relationship he has with his son.

One very well done plot device was the use of religion to progress the story line. The pagan beliefs of the Celts, and their need for sacrifices, is crucial to the story, as is the lesson some learn about how power gained can corrupt a person. It was interesting to see the differences between the beliefs of the Romans and those of the Celts, and how their beliefs lead them on their chosen paths, as well as how they all come to terms with their faiths and how it affects them, in the end of the story.

Joy Nash is definitely one to be watched. She has great world building skills, and her own personal magic with the pen is guaranteed to make hers a very strong name on the market in the not too distant future.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, May 2005. All rights reserved.

Great story, well written.
It's refreshing to read a historical set in a time period other than the 1700-1800's. I was caught up in the story of Lucius and Rhiannon from the first page, and the brother's ghost, while not a major paranormal element, is integral to the story and adds a humorous touch.
I only hope there's a sequel coming!

STORY BRIEF:
The Romans are occupying Northern Britannia in 116 AD. There are numerous Celtic clans who are weak against the Romans because they fight among themselves. Rhiannon is a healer and the queen of one clan. In order to unite the clans, she chose a mate who later died. She plans to wed Edmyg, Britannia's greatest warrior, again to unite the clans. When the Celts attack a group of Romans, Rhiannon is captured by the current Roman commander Lucius. He is immediately drawn to her and keeps her in a bedroom near him instead of in the slave quarters. He wants her, but he won't force himself on her.

Lucius' brother Aulus was killed by the Celts six months earlier. His skull was kept by Madog, who was a Druid user of magic. Aulus' ghost is trapped due to Madog's magic. The ghost is always hanging around Lucius. Only Lucius can see him. Lucius wants to solve the mystery of Aulus' death and free the ghost. Rhiannon knows something but won't tell Lucius.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
I haven't seen that many historical novels about the Celts and the Romans, so it was a nice change of pace. Other than the Celtic setting, I found this pretty standard. The plot, events, characters, and dialogue were ok, but there wasn't anything special or different enough to make it stand out. The ghost and magic added a small amount of fantasy to the story, but they were a minor part of the story.

DATA:
Story length: 309 pages. Swearing language: none. Sexual language: mild. Number of sex scenes: 5. Total number of sex scene pages: 19. Setting: 116 and 117 AD Northern Britannia and Assyria. Copyright: 2005. Genre: historical romance with a little fantasy.

OTHER BOOKS:
To date, I've read one other story by Joy Nash. I gave 4 stars to "Christmas Unplugged," copyright 2009, which appears in the anthology "Santa, Honey." My 4 star review for the anthology was posted on 10-4-09.

CAUTION SPOILER:
I did not like one part. Rhiannon and Lucius are in love. On page 253 she is aware that his men plan to mutiny with a plan to kill him. Yet she does not warn him. Her reason is that he would ask her how she knew this. She would have to tell him that a particular Celt in his fort was a spy. She chose to protect the spy instead of the man she loved? She would send him to his death? I think Rhiannon could have come up with a way to warn Lucius without giving away the spy's identity.

Roman commander Lucius Aquila leaves Rome to follow the trail that the ghost of his brother leads him on. He ends up at the fort in Britannia, where his brother was in command. The tales of his death are the same, but Lucius suspects the local tribe of Celts is to blame for his death.

Rhiannon, the queen of the tribe, is sent to seduce Lucius. She is expected to deliver him to the Celts in order for his death to feed Kernunnos, the Horned god. Instead, she falls in love with the Roman soldier. Tired of being used as a power play between warring chiefs, she tries to stop the death of Lucius at the hands of her tribe.

I was intrigued by the portrayal of life in this period of time: the civility of Rome versus the wilds of Britannia, and the brutal nature of the Celts. I have never read a novel like this, and I have read thousands.

Celtic Fire is set in 116 AD in Roman Britain, where Nash creates a tale of a Roman warrior, Lucius, and the Celtic Queen, Rhiannon, that's pure seduction and intrigue. I couldn't put the book down because I loved both of the characters so much. It's no wonder she's a National Best Selling author! Her books are real keepers! Terry Spear, Winning the Highlander's Heart, Heart of the Wolf

In 116 AD Northern Britannia, Celtic Queen Rhiannon detests killing the Roman wolf, but knows she has no choice. Magdog the Druid master deemed that the foreign military commander must be sacrificed to satiate the Horned God Kernunnos in the Rite of the Old Ones.

One year later in Assyria, the specter Aulus Aquila visits his brother Lucius pleading with him to come to Britannia to rescue him from a fate worse than death. Lucius believes his sibling somehow lives so he becomes the Roman Commander at Britannia to learn the truth about Aulus. To his chagrin he is distracted in his quest by one of his prisoners Rhiannon, who knows that the soul of his brother is trapped within the stones. As they fall in love, the Celtic Queen realizes she must escape to thwart Magdog from binding another Roman Commander to the Horned God's stones.

This ancient times paranormal fantasy romance is a terrific tale that employs otherworldly elements and a deep historical base to provide readers with an entertaining star-crossed lovers novel. Rhiannon is a courageous individual risking more than just her life to keep her beloved safe; Lucius is her fine partner if they can triumph over their guard-prisoner and Roman-Celtic differences and defeat Magdog. In many ways the villain makes the thriller brisk and entertaining as he brings to the plot wizardry fantasy components that on top of the forbidden love lead to fans cherishing the CELTIC FIRE that flows between the lead couple.

Harriet Klausner

Well, this was a pretty good book. When I got it I had no idea what to expect. Having never read this author, I was iffy. When a book has more then one element, it has to be done perfectly for the correct balance between the elements. Not alot of authors can do that to the readers satisfaction. This being a paranormal romance I thought was very good. The romance was great and the paranormal was not so off base that you had to talk yourself into believing it. It was a nice mix that did wonderful things for the book. This was a really good story. I would recommend it for a nice relaxing read to get lost in. Very enjoyable.

I am on a "debut" author roll. Buying a lot of first books from new writers. They strike me as fresh and giving me a new delight in finding authors that still love what they are doing.

Nash goes to Roman Britain and her love for the period truly shines through her writing. I ended up buy The Grail King and Deep Magic because of this book. She's that good.